Saturday, October 17, 2015

Garnish Island, Cork

On the second day of our road trip we jumped on the boat from Glengarriff to Garnish Island. We were the only passengers on the boat which made it absolutely perfect for taking pictures and seeing everything along the way. We got to visit Seal Island on our way, where a large colony (up to 250) of harbor seals reside. They were relaxing on the rocks, having the time of their seal lives, check out the super cute seal posing for my camera. Amazingly, we also got to see a sea eagle or white tailed eagle which were extinct in Ireland but one pair have been reintroduced here. Garnish Island or Illaunacullin (island of holly) is in Glengarriff harbor in Bantry Bay, Cork. The garden was designed by Harold Peto, for it's owners John Annan Bryce and his wife Violet, who purchased the island from the War Office in 1910 when it was little more than rock. The island was bequeathed to the Irish people in 1953 and is a truly beautiful attraction. The Gardens are the star attraction and are nestled among woodlands planted 100 years ago. The walled gardens boost beautiful exotic plants in a design that reminds me of one of my favorite childhood films The Secret Garden. Throughout the gardens are numerous buildings including the Martello Tower which dates back to 1805, a Grecian Temple, a clock tower and the Italian Temple and Italian Tea House amongst the Italian Gardens.The boat we took cost €10 each and admission was €4 each, it was worth every cent. For €14 each we saw seals up close, an eagle and strolled around gorgeous peaceful gardens with countless Instagram moments. Visiting the island was one of the highlights of our road trip and visiting it off season was perfect as there was no crowds at all, it was like having this nature haven all to ourselves.